New Rig

Ph33nix

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I'm looking to build a new rig for about $1500 I want to make it i7 based. but aside from that I havn't been keeping up with hardware and need a hand figuring out what components to get.
 

Sgt. Dante

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Here's an i5 build that's pretty much more than you'd need for a mid/high end gaming rig...

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FS-176-OE

The pre-builts on this site are a great place to steal ideas from. Shop around and you might find the parts cheaper.
 

RagTagBand

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Unless you're going to be doing a lot of 3D Modeling, Picture/movie Rendering ETC then an i7 is not worth the extra coin. If you're primarily going to be gaming then the 2500k (or the 2500 if you don't plan on overclocking) is more than enough CPU horsepower that also frees up more cash to toss at your GPU.

First of all, however, you need to tell us whether this rig is a Gaming Rig or a Graphics design rig.

Something else you need to tell us is when you want to build this Rig, there are quite a few nifty developments on the Horizon you need to take into account.
 

Ph33nix

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RagTagBand said:
Unless you're going to be doing a lot of 3D Modeling, Picture/movie Rendering ETC then an i7 is not worth the extra coin. If you're primarily going to be gaming then the 2500k (or the 2500 if you don't plan on overclocking) is more than enough CPU horsepower that also frees up more cash to toss at your GPU.

First of all, however, you need to tell us whether this rig is a Gaming Rig or a Graphics design rig.

Something else you need to tell us is when you want to build this Rig, there are quite a few nifty developments on the Horizon you need to take into account.
its a gaming rig and what do you mean nifty developments?
 

MercurySteam

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Ph33nix said:
I'm looking to build a new rig for about $1500 I want to make it i7 based. but aside from that I havn't been keeping up with hardware and need a hand figuring out what components to get.
Sounds like you're looking for what I'm building:

(This is assuming you live in the US)

CPU: Intel i7 2600K [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115070]
Mobo: ASUS P8Z68-V Pro Motherboard B3 [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131730]
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws X F3-12800CL8D-8GBXM (2x4GB) DDR3 [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231445]
Case: Antec Dark Fleet DF-85 Case [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129087]
PSU: Antec CP-850 850W Power Supply [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371024]
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB WD1002FAEX [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284]
SSD: OCZ Vertex 3 60GB SSD [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227737]
GPU: MSI GTX570 [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127552]

If you don't like the rugged look of the DF-85 and want something sexy instead then take a look around for yourself but the CP-850 PSU will only fit in certain Antec cases though I know another good Low-budget 850W PSU:

Alternate Case: Thermaltake Black Chaser MK-I Full Tower
Alternate PSU: Silverstone Strider Plus 850W ST85F-P

EDIT: The SSD is totally optional but still a good idea.
 

Ph33nix

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MercurySteam said:
Ph33nix said:
I'm looking to build a new rig for about $1500 I want to make it i7 based. but aside from that I havn't been keeping up with hardware and need a hand figuring out what components to get.
Sounds like you're looking for what I'm building:

(This is assuming you live in the US)

CPU: Intel i7 2600K [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115070]
Mobo: ASUS P8Z68-V Pro Motherboard B3 [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131730]
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws X F3-12800CL8D-8GBXM (2x4GB) DDR3 [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231445]
Case: Antec Dark Fleet DF-85 Case [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129087]
PSU: Antec CP-850 850W Power Supply [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371024]
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB WD1002FAEX [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284]
SSD: OCZ Vertex 3 60GB SSD [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227737]
GPU: MSI GTX570 [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127552]

If you don't like the rugged look of the DF-85 and want something sexy instead then take a look around for yourself but the CP-850 PSU will only fit in certain Antec cases though I know another good Low-budget 850W PSU:

Alternate Case: Silverstone Strider Plus 850W ST85F-P
Alternate PSU: Thermaltake Black Chaser MK-I Full Tower

EDIT: The SSD is totally optional but still a good idea.
first that case is awsome looking second how is the heat sink that comes with the i7-2600k?
 

MercurySteam

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Ph33nix said:
first that case is awsome looking second how is the heat sink that comes with the i7-2600k?
Thanks, I like it too and I know that Antec got a lot of flak for going with the industrial look but its airflow and cooling performance is of industrial standards. The Intel SandyBridge stock cooler is quite easy to install and comes with its own thermal grease. Apparently it's so effective that people doing low amounts of overclocking just crank the fan up to full speed as opposed to buying an aftermarket cooler.
 

RagTagBand

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Ph33nix said:
RagTagBand said:
Unless you're going to be doing a lot of 3D Modeling, Picture/movie Rendering ETC then an i7 is not worth the extra coin. If you're primarily going to be gaming then the 2500k (or the 2500 if you don't plan on overclocking) is more than enough CPU horsepower that also frees up more cash to toss at your GPU.

First of all, however, you need to tell us whether this rig is a Gaming Rig or a Graphics design rig.

Something else you need to tell us is when you want to build this Rig, there are quite a few nifty developments on the Horizon you need to take into account.
its a gaming rig and what do you mean nifty developments?
AMD are soon to be releasing their Bulldozer range of CPU's which is slated to directly compete with Intel's second generation CPU's, The current hype being they're going to end up better than Sandy Bridge BUT we dont know just yet.

AMD are also supposed to be releasing their 7000 series of GPU's around the same time, so while -right now- the obvious choice for any gaming rig is a 500 series nVidia GPU...in 1-2 months time, that may change (or not be as clear cut).

on the Intel side, there are rumors of Intel bringing out another pre-extreme CPU - the 2700k. This would replace the 2600k as the most advanced second generation Intel CPU on the market and most likely bring prices down. And if that happens you may have ended up buying a 2600k for the same price you could have had a 2700k, or a 2500k for the same price as the 2600k.

Speaking of the Extreme series of Sandy bridge (Sandy Bridge E), in January Intel are releasing 3 new processors in their Extreme range. I forget the model numbers off the top of my head but they're worth a look as they're the true High end of the second generation (and the last CPU's Intel are going to release before they go to their next Process, Ivy Bridge, and their next socket change, the 2011 socket)


If you're buying this computer with hopes to have it this month...I would say that you should at least wait for bulldozer to make an appearance.

If you're buying this computer around Christmas time, Wait for Sandy Bridge E and -hopefully- the 2700k price drop. (This, btw, is what i'm doing)

If you're in no rush whatsoever? Save your money and wait for Ivy bridge and socket 2011 next March. Ivy is meant to be the next batch of truly Hardcore CPU's from Intel, akin to last years Gulftown 1366 socket CPU's.

But it really all depends on how long you want to wait, just bare in mind that the next big thing is -always- Just around the corner in computer Hardware.
 

Ph33nix

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RagTagBand said:
Ph33nix said:
RagTagBand said:
Unless you're going to be doing a lot of 3D Modeling, Picture/movie Rendering ETC then an i7 is not worth the extra coin. If you're primarily going to be gaming then the 2500k (or the 2500 if you don't plan on overclocking) is more than enough CPU horsepower that also frees up more cash to toss at your GPU.

First of all, however, you need to tell us whether this rig is a Gaming Rig or a Graphics design rig.

Something else you need to tell us is when you want to build this Rig, there are quite a few nifty developments on the Horizon you need to take into account.
its a gaming rig and what do you mean nifty developments?
AMD are soon to be releasing their Bulldozer range of CPU's which is slated to directly compete with Intel's second generation CPU's, The current hype being they're going to end up better than Sandy Bridge BUT we dont know just yet.

AMD are also supposed to be releasing their 7000 series of GPU's around the same time, so while -right now- the obvious choice for any gaming rig is a 500 series nVidia GPU...in 1-2 months time, that may change (or not be as clear cut).

on the Intel side, there are rumors of Intel bringing out another pre-extreme CPU - the 2700k. This would replace the 2600k as the most advanced second generation Intel CPU on the market and most likely bring prices down. And if that happens you may have ended up buying a 2600k for the same price you could have had a 2700k, or a 2500k for the same price as the 2600k.

Speaking of the Extreme series of Sandy bridge (Sandy Bridge E), in January Intel are releasing 3 new processors in their Extreme range. I forget the model numbers off the top of my head but they're worth a look as they're the true High end of the second generation (and the last CPU's Intel are going to release before they go to their next Process, Ivy Bridge, and their next socket change, the 2011 socket)


If you're buying this computer with hopes to have it this month...I would say that you should at least wait for bulldozer to make an appearance.

If you're buying this computer around Christmas time, Wait for Sandy Bridge E and -hopefully- the 2700k price drop. (This, btw, is what i'm doing)

If you're in no rush whatsoever? Save your money and wait for Ivy bridge and socket 2011 next March. Ivy is meant to be the next batch of truly Hardcore CPU's from Intel, akin to last years Gulftown 1366 socket CPU's.

But it really all depends on how long you want to wait, just bare in mind that the next big thing is -always- Just around the corner in computer Hardware.
I was hoping to have it for battlefield 3 but if the tech is gonna jump in a month or two then i think i might hold off. is there a date for the bulldozer and 7000 series and the 2700k? or are these foggy over the horizon things?
 

MercurySteam

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RagTagBand said:
AMD are soon to be releasing their Bulldozer range of CPU's which is slated to directly compete with Intel's second generation CPU's, The current hype being they're going to end up better than Sandy Bridge BUT we dont know just yet.
I've heard this too. The problem is that Bulldozer will have up to sixteen cores and most games can only support up to four cores, which is a problem when some benches showed that the Phenom II X4s were doing better than the Phenom II X6s in games. We need the software to catch up with the hardware before we decide that having more than six (at the most) cores is a good idea for gaming.

RagTagBand said:
AMD are also supposed to be releasing their 7000 series of GPU's around the same time, so while -right now- the obvious choice for any gaming rig is a 500 series nVidia GPU...in 1-2 months time, that may change (or not be as clear cut).
If he's a serious gamer and wants PhysX and CUDA then I'd suggest sticking with nVidia. The 5xx series is actually quite astounding if not a wee bit expensive.

RagTagBand said:
on the Intel side, there are rumors of Intel bringing out another pre-extreme CPU - the 2700k. This would replace the 2600k as the most advanced second generation Intel CPU on the market and most likely bring prices down. And if that happens you may have ended up buying a 2600k for the same price you could have had a 2700k, or a 2500k for the same price as the 2600k.
Interesting, I've ner heard of this 2700K before, but it's nice to see that socket 1155 is giving one last 'hurrah' before 2011 and Bulldozer. Perhaps we may see the first SandyBridge with 6 cores and 12 threads?

RagTagBand said:
Speaking of the Extreme series of Sandy bridge (Sandy Bridge E), in January Intel are releasing 3 new processors in their Extreme range. I forget the model numbers off the top of my head but they're worth a look as they're the true High end of the second generation (and the last CPU's Intel are going to release before they go to their next Process, Ivy Bridge, and their next socket change, the 2011 socket)
I heard that socket 2011 will come with quad channel RAM, PCIe x32 and a whole bunch of other overkill tech. If the price gap is anything like the one between the socket 1156 and the socket 1366 CPUs, then then he may need to save up a lot more. And I mean a LOT.


RagTagBand said:
If you're buying this computer with hopes to have it this month...I would say that you should at least wait for bulldozer to make an appearance.

If you're buying this computer around Christmas time, Wait for Sandy Bridge E and -hopefully- the 2700k price drop. (This, btw, is what i'm doing)

If you're in no rush whatsoever? Save your money and wait for Ivy bridge and socket 2011 next March. Ivy is meant to be the next back of truly Hardcore CPU's from Intel, akin to last years Gulftown 1366 socket CPU's.

But it really all depends on how long you want to wait, just bare in mind that the next big thing is -always- Just around the corner in computer Hardware.
There is never a good time to build a rig and futureproofing is very difficult. With luck my proposed build will last four years (with a 2-way SLI of the GTX570) before needing a serious overhaul. If you start build as soon as new tech comes out then you risk flaws in the new tech (the SandyBridge silicon defect for example) and paying and arm and a leg for it. If you wait till later then you risk your build being outdated quicker and being replaced by better tech (mainly CPUs and GPUs).
 

RagTagBand

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Ph33nix said:
I was hoping to have it for battlefield 3 but if the tech is gonna jump in a month or two then i think i might hold off. is there a date for the bulldozer and 7000 series and the 2700k? or are these foggy over the horizon things?
Foggy? Yes. Over the Horizon? No.

the bulldozer chips are pretty much guaranteed to happen this year, if not within a month from right now.

the 7000 series of GPU's wouldn't be far off from the BD's.

The 2700k is almost certainly going to be released as a response to Bulldozer.

None of these things have specific release dates (AMD suck, SUCK at release dates) but all of these things only -really- make sense to be released soonish (before 2012) as any later would see them buried into obsolescence mighty fast.

My advice would be to wait until November 1st for any of this to come to light or at least get a release date - If nothing has happened by then and AMD are still being pussies, i'd still suggest getting an i5 over an i7 at current prices for gaming.

GPU>CPU for games.
 

MercurySteam

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Ph33nix said:
I was hoping to have it for battlefield 3 but if the tech is gonna jump in a month or two then i think i might hold off. is there a date for the bulldozer and 7000 series and the 2700k? or are these foggy over the horizon things?
The whispers I've been hearing says Q1 2012 for the 7xxx Radeon series and Bulldozer will be out by the end of the year (the AM3+ chipsets are already on the market). I have a friend who wanted to build a rig with Bulldozer and was going to wait till March next year, but I convinced him to stick with Intel.

RagTagBand said:
The 2700k is almost certainly going to be released as a response to Bulldozer.
If you already consider the 2600K overkill then why bother waiting for the 2700K?

RagTagBand said:
i'd still suggest getting an i5 over an i7 at current prices for gaming.
The 2500K is defiantly more value for money and the if 2700K will go beyond the 2600K then I'd like to think that the 2600K is hitting the sweet spot for crazy performance without getting too close to the $400 mark (my personal barrier for single PC components excluding screens).
 

Ph33nix

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what are the current benefits of ati vs nvidia. last time i built a machine i remember nvidea was waaay better than ati this was 4 or 5 years ago though.
 

RagTagBand

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MercurySteam said:
I've heard this too. The problem is that Bulldozer will have up to sixteen cores and most games can only support up to four cores, which is a problem when some benches showed that the Phenom II X4s were doing better than the Phenom II X6s in games. We need the software to catch up with the hardware before we decide that having more than six (at the most) cores is a good idea for gaming.
Bulldozer covers a LARGE range of CPU's, and the 16 core BD has not been made for the desktop market, it has been made to run servers.

http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/07/amd-ships-16-core-bulldozer-chips-for-servers-makes-consumers-w/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulldozer_%28processor%29#Processors Thats really the range for the desktop market; Zambezi CPU's.

If he's a serious gamer and wants PhysX and CUDA then I'd suggest sticking with nVidia. The 5xx series is actually quite astounding if not a wee bit expensive.
I completely agree, but AMD shouldn't be counted out of the GPU Market and if they've got their response to the 500 series on the way...Makes sense to see what it can do. Especially if he's on a mid-low budget and AMD GPU's are GREAT budget GPU's (especially if you're paying the electric bill!)

Interesting, I've ner heard of this 2700K before, but it's nice to see that socket 1155 is giving one last 'hurrah' before 2011 and Bulldozer. Perhaps we may see the first SandyBridge with 6 cores and 12 threads?
the 2700k will likely be a quad core with a slightly higher spec than the 2600k (think of the gap between 2500k and the 2600k; only a little bit here and there but still there). Sandy Bridge E is where the Sandy bridge hexacores are at.

http://www.maximumpc.com/article/news/sandy_bridge-e_specs_leak_web

the highest end model will have, apparently, 15mb of cache.

I heard that socket 2011 will come with quad channel RAM, PCIe x32 and a whole bunch of other overkill tech. If the price gap is anything like the one between the socket 1156 and the socket 1366 CPUs, then then he may need to save up a lot more. And I mean a LOT.
Thats for certain, but that extra 7 months of saving should be able to cover that difference -if- he wanted to wait.
 

RagTagBand

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MercurySteam said:
If you already consider the 2600K overkill then why bother waiting for the 2700K?
Not to buy the 2700k, but to benefit from its market effects. The 2700k would likely cause the 2600k to drop in price to a point where its not overkill to buy it for a gaming rig.

Right now, the 2600k -is- overkill for a gaming rig, that extra ~$100+ is better spent on a GPU in a gaming rig. But if the price falls...
 

MercurySteam

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Ph33nix said:
what are the current benefits of ati vs nvidia. last time i built a machine i remember nvidea was waaay better than ati this was 4 or 5 years ago though.
Basically nVida cards have CUDA and PhysX tech. Here's a nice demo:


They're also much more expensive but have reliable drivers and SLI setups are relatively hassle free plus the CUDA technology can also be used to help render in 3Ds Max 2012. Nvidia cards can be also known for having surprisingly better performance in some games than other ATI cards.

AMD/ATI cards are great for budget gamers, have great Crossfire/CrossfireX performance with nice headroom for overclocking, though the Catalyst drivers can become a bit iffy, sometimes with Crossfire setups (but they are constantly getting fixed) and have no plans for using PhysX in the future, though hacked drivers can allow you to use a Nvidia card's PhysX processing Unit with an ATI card.
 

Ph33nix

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NVidia it is after watching the mirrors edge comparison. and the metro 2033 comparison.
 

MercurySteam

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Ph33nix said:
NVidia it is after watching the mirrors edge comparison. and the metro 2033 comparison.
Here's [http://www.hwcompare.com/9021/geforce-gtx-570-vs-radeon-hd-6950-2gb/] a bench of the GTX570 vs. the HD6950; Nvidia's second best single GPU card against ATI's second best single GPU card. As you can see the GTX570 beats the 6950 in almost every aspect. The 6950 does save more power and has a bit more vRAM with a tiny bit faster memory bandwidth with a much faster texel rate (though I don't consider anisotropic filtering to be massively important). Apart from that, the 570 is superior in every other way and with only a $60 price difference which is made up by better performance and PhysX, I'd say Nvidia is worth it.
 

Ph33nix

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My biggest concern is will the 570 run bf3 on max?

edit: also I'm looking to run stuff at 1080p will that make a difference between the 6970 and 570?